ABOUT THE FOUNDATION

The Richard L. Duchossois Foundation (RLD) was founded in 2022 and launched formal operations in 2024. The Foundation is committed to addressing seemingly intractable social problems with imagination and passion. We strive to improve the lives of families and veterans, and to cultivate entrepreneurs through data driven and collaborative approaches to funding. We seek to practice philanthropy with rigor and from a place of listening and strive to be a learning organization to always seek greater understanding of our funding priorities. While our home and our priority is the Chicago region, we may consider national efforts that are aligned with our mission, values and goals.

ABOUT THE DATA STRATEGY & INSIGHTS TEAM

RLD Foundations Data Strategy & Insights team provides a backbone for the foundation’s commitment to evidence-informed grantmaking and sector-wide learning. We strive to transform data from a compliance exercise into a catalyst for change, building a continuous cycle of inquiry, insight, and action within RLD Foundation, across our grantee partners, and throughout Chicago’s social sector ecosystem.

RLD Foundation is building a team of data scientists and researchers to advance six interconnected areas of work:

• Generating data-driven insights to inform grantmaking strategy
• Embedding iterative strategic learning processes into grant portfolio management
• Developing monitoring and evaluation systems that measure what matters
• Supporting grantee data capacity to help partners unlock the value of their own information
• Strengthening ecosystem-wide data infrastructure where possible
• Designing and building robust internal and public-facing data systems and tools.

Throughout our work, the team champions data principles that are purposeful, community-grounded, and capable of driving lasting, systemic change. We strive to be a learning organization, valuing thoughtful iteration, transparency about what we know and don’t know, and learning in close partnership with each other, grantees, and communities.

JOB SUMMARY

RLD Foundation seeks a mission-driven Senior Data Scientist & AI Engineer to join our Data Strategy & Insights team. In this role, you will play a central part in advancing the foundations data strategy in a highly collaborative environment. The position sits at the intersection of data and AI engineering, advanced analytics, and data strategy, offering the opportunity to do technically rigorous, high-impact work in service of social change.

The role has two co-equal primary responsibilities: (1) building and owning RLD Foundations core data infrastructure and AI-enabled analytics platform, and (2) conducting advanced analytics to generate insights that inform grantmaking strategy and organizational learning. The position will architect the technical systems that enable high-quality data work across the foundation while also serving as a lead analyst who delivers clear, actionable insights to program teams and leadership. There will also be opportunities to contribute to broader data strat…